El Camino de Santiago, known in English as the Way of St. James, is an ancient pilgrimage that leads to the cathedral of Santiago de Compostela in Galicia, at the northwest tip of Spain. Since the dark ages, pilgrims setting out from all corners of Europe have tackled this fabled trail to pay a visit to the shrine of the apostle St James at journey’s end.

The trail is steeped in history; travellers today stick to an itinerary first drawn up the French Monk Aymeric Picaud back in 1140. Nearly a millennium later, 150,000 travellers each year visit the sites that he recommended along the way.

A vast network of routes, covering the whole of Europe, lead to the vaunted World Heritage site in Galicia, while the traditional starting-point can be found at Saint-Jean-Pied-de-Port, a commune 8km into Aquitaine on the border with France.

This route, known as ‘El Camino Francés’, spans most of northern Spain – starting with the forbidding highlands of the Basque country, descending into the plains of León before leading to the mild, damp hills of Galicia. This hike can take a month or more to complete.

The Spanish tourism board goes to great lengths to preserve El Camino Francés; there is no shortage of free accommodation en route, and these hostels are run by volunteers who want to see the pilgrimage thrive in the future. To make it official, travellers set out with a passport, which they get validated at various stops along the way to make sure that they qualify for the compostela – a certificate presented in Santiago.

This document authenticates the pilgrimage, and will only be issued if the candidate can prove that he or she has completed 100km by walking. If you’re Christian, the compostela also halves the amount of time your soul will spend in purgatory – so you can consider that a bonus!

2010 is a big year for the Way, because St James’s Day (the 25th of July) falls on a Sunday, making it a Holy Compostellan year. The pilgrimage is imbued with added spiritual significance, and all purgatory time is deducted for anyone who completes the trail in 2010.

Despite the spiritual roots of the journey, the modern Camino is seen by many as less of a religious challenge and more of a personal test of stamina and will power. The journey is open to people of all ages and faiths. Organisers encourage the companionship and bridge building that develops among travellers as they support each other along the way. Whatever their reasons for setting out on the trail, hikers are said to have a fresh outlook once they return to the lives they put on hold.